Under a clear blue sky, Haruto walked the path to school with a light heart. In addition to basking in the pleasant morning sunlight, the memory of watching the fireworks with Ayaka the other day lifted his spirits. Tomoya, walking beside him, spoke up in a teasing tone. “Yo, Haru. You’re in a pretty good mood this morning.” “Well, when you get to watch fireworks with your super cute girlfriend, of course you’re gonna be in a good mood, right?” Haruto casually bragged in response to Tomoya’s teasing. “Oh, yeah, yeah. Sure, whatever you say.” “By the way, thanks for yesterday. For coming along to the fireworks festival.” “No problem. Though, with how shamelessly lovey-dovey you two were, there might not have been much point in us being there.” “Well… still, thanks.” Remembering how close he and Ayaka had been while touring the food stalls yesterday, Haruto thanked Tomoya, his cheeks tinged with a faint blush. “Eh, I got to enjoy the festival food with Aizawa-san, so it’s all good.” “Oh yeah, did you end up watching the fireworks with Aizawa-san?” “Yeah. Although, we were hitting the food stalls right up to the last minute, so all the good spots in the venue were taken. We ended up watching from the slope of the riverbank.” “Hahaha, that’s so like you. Was Aizawa-san mad?” “Aizawa-san, with a heart as vast and merciful as a goddess, forgave my foolish act.” Tomoya clasped his hands together and looked up at the sky as if offering a prayer. “I see. Good thing Aizawa-san is such a goddess, then.” Brushing off his dramatic best friend, Haruto made a mental note to properly thank Saki later. After arriving at school with Tomoya, Haruto entered the classroom and sat at his desk, where he noticed it was noisier than usual.
“Looks pretty lively around Tōjō-san,” Tomoya said, looking toward the center of the commotion. “You don’t think they found out I’m dating Ayaka, do you?” “Nah, if that were the case, the second you walked in, you’d both be getting grilled with questions, right?” “That’s true.” Haruto lowered his voice so those around them wouldn’t hear his conversation with Tomoya. Ayaka’s desk was right around the middle of the classroom, and a large group of female students had currently gathered there, pelting her with questions about something. Haruto watched the crowd with a worried expression. Catching a glimpse of Ayaka between the girls surrounding her, he could see she was wearing a strained, polite smile. “I’ll go get a little closer and listen in. You should probably stay away, just in case.” “Yeah. Sorry. I’m counting on you.” Tomoya gave Haruto a small wave and headed toward the center of the classroom’s uproar. A few minutes later, he returned to Haruto’s side with a troubled look on his face. “How’d it go?” “Yeah, it seems a classmate saw you two walking together yesterday.” “I knew it…” Haruto’s expression turned grim at Tomoya’s words. Then, a question occurred to him, and he looked at his best friend. “Huh? But why isn’t anyone coming over to me?” “About that… apparently, the person who saw you only got a look at your backs. Tōjō-san is, well, recognizable enough from behind with her looks, but you, Average High School Boy A, are impossible to identify from the back, right?” “Hey, what’s with this ‘Average High School Boy A’? You make me sound like a mob character.” “You are a mob character.” “You jerk.” Haruto gave Tomoya a light shove with a practiced motion in response to his teasing.
Apparently, the student who spotted them could only see their backs and had been unable to get around to the front because the crowd was too dense. But even from behind, the couple was definitely radiating a lover’s aura. Combined with the fact that Ayaka had declared she had someone she liked right after summer break, it seemed she was now being interrogated about all of it. “Well, you guys yesterday were giving off such a strong lovey-dovey couple vibe it was almost enough to give someone heartburn.” “…” Tomoya said with a fed-up, exasperated expression. Unable to strongly deny his words, Haruto could only remain silent. “This just makes it even harder to get close to Tōjō-san at school.” “Haaah… yeah…” Haruto let out a heavy sigh and looked gloomily at the crowd in the center of the classroom. ※ ※ ※ “Ugh, a big cleaning first thing on a Monday… I’m so not motivated,” grumbled Tomoya, pulling a stack of books from a bookshelf. “It’s our school’s tradition to have the entire student body do a big cleanup the week after summer break. It can’t be helped,” Saki responded, wiping down the now-empty shelf with a dust rag. At the high school they attended, it was a tradition for all students to clean the school building and grounds the week after summer vacation. The school’s reasoning was apparently to instill a spirit of caring for their place of learning, while also getting their sluggish bodies moving after the long break. For the cleaning, each class was divided into several groups and assigned a specific area. Tomoya and Saki were in the same group, assigned to clean the library. “Well, it’s a hundred times better than having to sit through a math or Japanese lit class right off the bat.” “True. Besides, our group is still lucky since we’re inside. Compared to the groups pulling weeds on the athletic field, anyway.”
As she spoke, Saki glanced out the window. Summer break may have been over, but the hot days continued, with the sun beating down mercilessly. Saki squinted in the bright, dazzling sunlight. Tomoya glanced at her out of the corner of his eye before slowly speaking as he returned the books to the wiped-down shelf. “By the way, Aizawa-san.” “Hm?” “Thanks for watching the fireworks with me yesterday.” “Same to you. Thanks for treating me to everything.” Saki replied with a gentle smile. The two of them had gone to the fireworks festival as their respective best friends, to provide a plausible excuse for Haruto and Ayaka to be there together. Afterward, being considerate, Tomoya and Saki had split off from the new couple and enjoyed touring the food stalls and watching the fireworks on their own. As Saki gave a small bow of thanks for all the treats, Tomoya’s face lit up with a grin, a stack of books still in his arms. “You made everything look so delicious when you were eating, Aizawasan, so it was worth treating you.” “Well… I mean, festival food is delicious, isn’t it?” “True. It was a lot of fun, so I wanna go stall-hopping with you again sometime, Aizawa-san. Makes me wanna treat you to all sorts of stuff.” “Akagi-kun, are you trying to win me over with food?” “I am.” “Hey!” Tomoya cackled as Saki scowled and shot back a retort. “Don’t think I’m some cheap girl you can lure with food. I will not be going to any more food stalls with you, Akagi-kun. I refuse. Unequivocally.” “Aww, really? Not even if I offer to buy you fried chicken?” “Nope.” “What about beef skewers?” “Absolutely not.” “Okay then, chocolate-covered bananas and crepes.” “…There may be room for consideration.” “Cotton candy and baby castella cakes.” “The possibility of me not going isn’t not a possibility… maybe.” “Huh? Which is it?”
“Now, which do you think it is?” Tomoya scrunched his brow and tilted his head at Saki’s reply. Saki, turning her face away from him, quirked her lips into a small smile as she took in the scene visible through a gap in the bookshelves.
“More importantly, we have to do something about that,” Saki said. Where she was looking, Ayaka was wiping down a library desk with a dust rag. Two male students were hovering around her, pestering her with various questions. “Uh, um, Tōjō-san. I didn’t know you had a boyfriend.” “No… um, that’s not—” “But I heard the guy you were with at the fireworks festival yesterday looked really close with you. Do you happen to have an older brother, Tōjō- san?” “No. I don’t—” “Then was that guy yesterday really your boyfriend?” The two boys fired off questions one after another, cutting off Ayaka’s replies. Normally, Ayaka was always surrounded by girls, making it difficult for boys to approach her with questions. But now, with everyone split into cleaning groups, the wall of girls that kept the boys at a distance was gone. Seizing the opportunity, the two students were grilling her relentlessly. “When did you start dating, Tōjō-san?” “Who is he? A guy from this school?” “Seriously, was the guy at the fireworks festival your boyfriend?” “Is he the one you said you liked?” Seeing the boys hammering Ayaka with so many questions that she didn’t even have time to answer, another boy who was cleaning in the library couldn’t stand it anymore and spoke up. “Hey, Tōjō-san is wiping the desks, so you two should go do the floors.” “Huh? Nah, I’m helping Tōjō-san.” “Me too. Ōtsuki, you can do the floors.” The two boys shot Haruto annoyed looks. “Yeah, but Aya—I mean, Tōjō-san is having a hard time cleaning with you guys interrogating her, isn’t she?” “What’s it to you, Ōtsuki? Trying to look good and score points with Tōjō- san?” “It’s not like that—” “Then what is it? Besides, Tōjō-san was super close with the guy at the fireworks festival yesterday, right? So I don’t think trying to so obviously boost your favorability rating is gonna do you any good now.” The male student retorted sarcastically, trying to shut down Haruto’s continued warnings.
“Yeah, dude. No matter how many points you try to score, you’re totally off Tōjō-san’s radar.” The other student also laughed scornfully at Haruto. “Uh oh, this is bad…” Saki muttered, observing the entire exchange from between the bookshelves. “Hm?” Tomoya asked, hearing that, and moved next to her, peering through the gap in the shelves at Haruto and the others. “What’s up?” “Ayaka’s about to snap.” “What?! Tōjō-san snaps?!” In Tomoya’s mind, Ayaka was the epitome of a gentle person, the furthest thing from someone who would “snap.” “It’s rare. I’ve only seen her get truly angry once.” “Is this one of those things where the normally nice person is super scary when they get mad?” “Exactly.” Saki nodded silently. Tomoya carefully peeked at Ayaka through the gap in the shelves. Sure enough, the troubled smile she’d been wearing just moments ago had vanished, replaced by a face as expressionless as a Noh mask1. Ayaka’s face, usually so gentle, was now a completely unreadable, blank mask. Seeing it, Tomoya felt a chill run down his spine that had nothing to do with the summer heat. “This is bad…” “Right?” After their brief exchange, Tomoya let out a determined “Alright!” and burst out from behind the bookshelf. “Hey, Iijima, Tanaka! Let’s go get a bucket of water to clean the floors together!” Tomoya called out to the two boys bothering Ayaka, then slung his arms over both their shoulders from behind. “Whoa?! Hey, Akagi! Don’t touch me, that’s gross!” “What’s the big deal, Iijima! We’re buddies, right? Let’s go get some water while we get all friendly!” “Stop it! You’re creeping me out!” “Come on, come on! Tanaka, you’re coming too! Let’s go be three sweaty dudes together!” “Stop! I’m not sweaty!”
“It’s fine, it’s fine.” Tomoya easily brushed off their protests and dragged them out of the library. Saki, who had watched the boisterous departure of the boys, gave Tomoya’s back a thumbs-up. “Good job, Akagi-kun.” She moved over to where Ayaka and Haruto remained in the library. “Ayaka, you owe Akagi-kun one now.” “Yeah…” Ayaka nodded while taking deep breaths, as if trying to calm herself down. Just then, Haruto spoke up apologetically. “Sorry, Ayaka. I couldn’t do anything.” Haruto apologized, his voice dejected. At that, Ayaka whipped her entire body around to face him. “You don’t have to apologize, Haruto-kun! I was so happy you came over!” After saying that, Ayaka slid closer to Haruto. “It’s not true that you’re off my radar, okay? I only have eyes for you, Haruto-kun! You’re… you’re my everything.” She pleaded desperately, her voice catching slightly on the last words as a shy blush colored her cheeks. “O-Oh… thank you. You’re everything to me too, Ayaka.” “Haruto-kun!” Haruto’s words made Ayaka’s expression brighten instantly, as if the Noh mask from before had been a lie. She started to spread her arms to hug him. “Ahem! Ayaka, should I leave the library too?” “Hau! S-Sorry, Saki.” Just before she could leap into Haruto’s arms, Saki let out a loud cough to remind Ayaka of her presence. Flustered, Ayaka immediately folded her outstretched arms in front of her chest. “Honestly, this is a school, you know? If someone saw you hugging Ōtsuki-kun here, you wouldn’t be able to explain it away.” “Ugh… but the last time I touched Haruto-kun was right before I left the house, so it’s been almost three hours since we’ve touched…” muttered Ayaka with a pout, looking down. “Not only that, we can’t even talk or look each other in the eye, you know? It’s even hard to get close to him in the classroom…”
She was no longer making excuses but simply venting her frustrations, to which Saki gave a wry smile. “You were the one who decided to keep your relationship with Ōtsuki-kun a secret, weren’t you, Ayaka?” “Well, yes, but…” Ayaka’s eyes drooped dejectedly. Knowing about the trauma she carried, Saki didn’t press the issue further and instead glanced at the door where Tomoya and the others had left. “Can’t be helped, I guess. Alright, I’ll keep watch to see if Akagi-kun and the others are coming back, so you can get your dose of Ōtsuki-kun in the meantime.” As Saki said this, a brilliant smile bloomed on Ayaka’s face. “Thank you, Saki!” After thanking her best friend, Ayaka immediately charged toward Haruto. “Haruto-kun!” “Nwah?! H-Hey, Ayaka?! This is a school, you know?!” “It’s okay, Saki’s keeping watch!” “Yeah, but…” “Ōtsuki-kun, if you don’t manage to calm Ayaka down before Akagi-kun and the others get back, you’re going to have a big problem on your hands later, you know?” Saki said, keeping her eyes on the library door. At her words, Haruto gave a wry smile, inwardly conceding—She’s right. He gently stroked the head of his beloved girlfriend, who was now clinging to him. “Heheee…” Ayaka’s happy little sigh made the corners of Haruto’s mouth turn up naturally as well. And so, as Saki muttered “lovebirds” under her breath, the two spent a few precious moments as a couple before Tomoya and the others returned. ※ ※ ※ Once the big library cleaning was over, Ayaka was once again surrounded by a large group of female students. Furthermore, male students were now hovering around that circle, constantly eavesdropping to gather as much information as possible. As a result, Haruto couldn’t carelessly approach Ayaka, and soon it was time to go home.
Haruto glanced over at Ayaka, who was still being bombarded with questions even after school. He remembered how she had been in the library and wanted to do something about the current situation. Unfortunately, no good ideas came to his mind. The easiest thing would be to thoughtlessly declare, I’m Ayaka’s boyfriend!, but he couldn’t do that. Ayaka had experienced trouble with friends in middle school over a boy who had confessed to her, and it had left her with a bit of trauma. The “I’m not interested in romance” image she had cultivated at school was a result of that middle school incident. He couldn’t just ignore those issues and act on his own selfish desires. Even after the library cleaning, Ayaka had kept a smile on her face whenever he saw her from a distance. But Haruto, who had spent the summer with her and was now her boyfriend, could tell. Behind that polite smile, she was bottling up a lot of frustration. Isn’t there some good way to handle this…? Haruto racked his brain. Just then, Tomoya came over to him, his bag slung over his shoulder. “Haru, sorry, but I’ve got a place to be, so I’m heading home first today.” “Got it. See you tomorrow, then.” “Yeah, see ya tomorrow.” After a brief exchange, Haruto watched his best friend’s back for a moment as he left the classroom. Then, he too grabbed his bag from his desk and stood up. “Haaah… I guess I’ll head home too.” Letting out what must have been his tenth sigh of the day, he prepared to quietly leave the classroom. Just before he was completely out the door, Haruto looked toward Ayaka one more time. For a split second, their eyes met. In that instant, the corners of Ayaka’s mouth lifted into a smile. The moment he blinked, her expression had returned to the polite smile from before. It happened so fast that he wondered if he had imagined it. But he was certain their eyes had met, and she had smiled at him. That alone made his heart leap, and at the same time, his desire to interact normally with Ayaka at school grew stronger. He wished they could openly act like a couple, just as they had in the library. But frustrated by his inability to do anything about the current situation, Haruto left the classroom.
And so, on his way home from school, walking alone on the sidewalk, Haruto mulled over various ways he might be able to interact with Ayaka naturally at school. I’ve barely even talked to Ayaka at school up until now. Before they met through his housekeeping job, they were just classmates who knew each other by sight. If they suddenly started acting friendly right after the break, it would definitely draw suspicion. My girlfriend is right there in front of me, and I can’t even talk to her… what kind of hell is this? Haruto muttered to himself. Suddenly, a jolt ran through his back. “Doooon.” “Nwah?!”
Pushed from behind by someone, Haruto stumbled forward two or three steps, losing his balance. He managed to steady himself and avoid falling, then turned around to complain to his attacker. “That was dangerous, Shizuku!” “This is an encouraging doooon, Haru-senpai.” Shizuku replied with her usual deadpan expression, her hands still held out from where she’d pushed him. “What the hell is an ‘encouraging doooon’?” Haruto shot Shizuku a disapproving look for her typically nonsensical statement, but she seemed completely unfazed. “I heard the rumors at school today. That Tōjō-senpai has a boyfriend.” It seemed the day’s commotion had even reached Shizuku, who was in a different grade. “You finally managed to start dating the school idol, Tōjō-senpai, only to have her stolen away by another man right away. The kind-hearted junior, Shizuku-chan, is here to console the pitiful Haru-senpai.” “Yeah, no, I haven’t been cheated on.” Haruto replied with perfect calm to Shizuku, who was puffing out her chest proudly. At that, Shizuku’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. “Hm? Then the boy next to Tōjō-senpai that everyone’s rumoring about is you, Haru-senpai?” “That’s right. Besides, I told you before, didn’t I? That I was going to see the fireworks with Ayaka. You demanded a souvenir from me then, remember?” “I instantly erased such a conversation from my brain. Therefore, I do not remember.” “Hey…” Haruto covered his face with one hand at his junior’s audacious declaration. “Then why were you walking alone all dejectedly, Haru-senpai, as if you’d been brutally dumped by Tōjō-senpai?” Shizuku tilted her head as she questioned Haruto. “The rumors say that Tōjō-senpai and the boy next to her seemed to be getting along quite well. Well enough to be radiating a pink aura all around them.” “That’s… we’re keeping it a secret at school. That I’m dating Ayaka.” Hearing Haruto’s words, Shizuku’s eyebrow twitched in reaction.
“Haru-senpai… did you chicken out? Afraid of being resented by all the guys at school?” Haruto shook his head slightly at her scrutinizing gaze. “No. If I could, I’d want to make my relationship with Ayaka public. But…” “But?” Shizuku stared at him with her blank expression, prompting him to continue. After hesitating for a moment on how to phrase it, Haruto slowly began to speak. “I want to announce that I’m Ayaka’s boyfriend. But if I do, there’s a chance it could complicate her friendships. Apparently, Ayaka had trouble with that in the past, and she’s a little scared of how her friends will react when they find out about us.” After listening to Haruto’s explanation, Shizuku nodded as if she understood. “Ah, so that’s what it is.” “In other words, Tōjō-senpai is afraid of earning the resentment and animosity of girls who liked you, Haru-senpai. Is that it?” “Well, I think it’s something like that.” When Haruto confirmed it, Shizuku spoke to him with a solemn expression. “Haru-senpai… are you conceited?” “Shut up. I think it’s just Ayaka worrying for nothing, too!” Haruto shot back without a pause at Shizuku, who was giving off a distinct “Oh, Senpai, honestly…” vibe. Haruto himself didn’t believe he was popular enough with girls to disrupt Ayaka’s friendships. Therefore, he thought all the potential problems that might arise from their relationship going public were just her needless fears. He thought so, but when he considered Ayaka’s feelings, he couldn’t just ignore them. Haruto once again let out a troubled sigh. Shizuku turned her blank expression toward him. “Haru-senpai, are you really okay with leaving things like this? You’re already a second-year, you know? Next year is entrance exams. Which means this is your last year of high school to have as much fun as you can.” “I know. I want to do something about it, too. But I can’t think of any good ideas.” Haruto wore a look of utter helplessness. At that, Shizuku lowered her gaze as if deep in thought for a moment, then abruptly looked up.
“Understood. I shall lend you my assistance.” “Huh?” Haruto let out a surprised yelp at the unexpected offer from Shizuku. “I, the ever-helpful and senpai-adoring junior, Shizuku-san, will lend a hand for your sake, Haru-senpai.” As she spoke, Shizuku pinched the collar of her shirt with one hand, flashing a tiny sliver of her neck at Haruto and uttering a completely nonsensical “Oh myyy~.” Haruto gave her an incredibly anxious look. “I’m really grateful that you’ll help, but… what exactly are you going to do?” “Fufufu… telling you would spoil the fun.” “Yeah, but I’m not really looking for ‘fun’ here…” Haruto’s anxiety spiked as Shizuku gave a fearless smirk, despite her blank expression. “Now, now, Haru-senpai, please rest easy with the feeling of being on a mud boat.” “No, that’s not right! It’s supposed to be a big ship! A mud boat is the one that sinks!” Shizuku turned to Haruto, who had immediately interjected, her expression dead-serious. “Haru-senpai, life is about overcoming the raging waves.” “You can’t even get over a ripple if the boat sinks, can you?” As his junior strode off triumphantly, Haruto’s anxiety only continued to grow. ※ ※ ※ The rumor that the school idol had been on a fireworks date showed no signs of dying down the next day. Whenever it was break time, Ayaka would instantly be swarmed by a crowd of female students. Just like yesterday, Haruto couldn’t interact with her at all at school, and soon it was time to go home. He let out a solitary sigh at the situation—his girlfriend was right there, yet he couldn’t even speak to her. However, remembering it was Tuesday, his expression softened slightly. Starting today, Haruto’s grandmother would be working as a live-in housekeeper for the Tōjō family. And Haruto himself was scheduled to start staying over at their house from today as well.
Even if we can’t be together at school, we can be together at home. Haruto decided to hurry home and start getting ready to head over to the Tōjōs. Just then, Tomoya came over. “Haru, let’s go home.” “Okay, let’s get out of here.” Haruto nodded at Tomoya, who had his bag slung over his shoulder, and quickly stood up. “Oh? What’s got you so fired up?” “Nothing, I’m not that fired up. I just need to get home quick and get ready to stay over.” At Haruto’s words, a teasing smile played on Tomoya’s lips. “Ahhh.” “Starts today, huh? Your lovey-dovey cohabitation life.” “Lovey-dovey… you think we’d do that with her whole family around?” Haruto said with a fed-up look, but Tomoya just kept grinning as he replied. “So you’re saying you would be lovey-dovey if her family wasn’t around?” “That’s… up to her, isn’t it? If she doesn’t want that, I’m not going to force it.” “Nah, she’ll want it. I can tell for sure from how she’s been acting. The ‘I love you’ aura she’s sending your way is off the charts.” “Well… I mean…” Haruto gave a hesitant reply to Tomoya’s firm declaration, feeling embarrassed. Thinking back on everything that had happened since he first met Ayaka, Haruto could keenly feel how much she cared for him. The realization made his heart itch with a mixture of happiness and bashfulness. “You know, maybe if you just announce you’re her boyfriend and show everyone what a dumb couple you are, this whole commotion will die down faster. Everyone will get their fill of your PDA and stop coming near you.” Even as Haruto and Tomoya were talking, Ayaka remained at the center of the uproar. Haruto glanced her way, then gave a wry smile. “I wish I could do that.” “You’re not denying the ‘dumb couple’ part, huh.” “…I deny it.” “That reaction is a confirmation.” “Shut up. Let’s go.”
Haruto replied brusquely to the ever-teasing Tomoya and headed for the classroom exit. But just then, a female student appeared at the rear exit Haruto was walking toward. “Ha-ru-se-n-pa-i! Let’s walk home together!” It was Shizuku. Despite her blank expression, her voice boomed throughout the classroom. Disregarding the fact that she was in an upperclassmen’s room, she strode in without hesitation and came right up to Haruto. “H-Hey, Shizuku?!” “Haru-senpai, let’s walk home together,” Shizuku repeated, now standing right next to him. In response, a buzz started to spread through the classroom, centered on the two of them. Whispers could be heard from all over. “Who’s that girl?” “Ōtsuki-kun’s girlfriend?” “Isn’t that the first-year, Dōjima?” “She’s cute. Ōtsuki, go explode.” The various comments gave Haruto a slight headache. The absolute, undisputed celebrity at this school was Tōjō Ayaka. However, the name Dōjima Shizuku was also widely recognized among the male students, especially the first-years, as a cute girl. With Shizuku’s sudden appearance, all the eyes in the classroom that had been on Ayaka instantly shifted to Shizuku and Haruto. Completely unfazed, she spoke to Haruto as if nothing was out of the ordinary. “You’re a lucky man, Haru-senpai. Getting to walk home with such a cute junior.” Haruto’s expression twitched at her utter lack of bashfulness. Just then, Tomoya joined the conversation. “Hey, Shizuku-chan. Long time no see.” “Tomo-senpai. It’s been a while.” “Shizuku-chan, uh, about walking home with Haru—” “Ah, by any chance, were you planning to walk home with Haru-senpai, Tomo-senpai?” “Huh? Ah, well, yeah.” “Then I’m sorry, but please hand Haru-senpai over to me for today.” Shizuku declared this with a deadpan face, then linked her arm with Haruto’s. Instantly, the buzz in the classroom grew even louder.
Haruto felt a mixture of jealous and curious stares on him, and his panic grew. Just then, one of the girls who had been surrounding Ayaka hesitantly called out to Shizuku. “U-Um… are you…” “I am Dōjima Shizuku, from class 1-B. Height, 152 centimeters. Blood type, AB. Birthday, June 7th. My favorite drink is plum kelp tea. Would you like to know my three sizes as well?” “Uh, n-no, that’s okay…” The upperclassman shook her head, flustered by Shizuku’s deadpan selfintroduction. In response, disappointed sighs could be heard from some of the boys. “Um… D-Dōjima-san… are you, like, Ōtsuki-kun’s girlfriend or something?” the girl asked hesitantly. The moment she was asked, Shizuku moved right up close to the girl. “Do I look like it? Do Haru-senpai and I look like a couple? We do, don’t we? We do? We do??” “Eek, w-well, I, uh… you look like you have a close relationship, I guess…” Startled by Shizuku suddenly closing the distance and interrogating her with a straight face, the girl took a few steps back, stammering her reply. Hearing the girl’s answer, Shizuku seemed satisfied despite her blank expression and turned to Haruto. “Did you hear that, Haru-senpai? This senpai is telling us that it’s impossible to think of us as anything but lovers.” “That’s not what she said!” Haruto immediately shot back at Shizuku’s gross misinterpretation of the girl’s words. He then pulled his right arm free from her grasp. “Shizuku is not my girlfriend,” Haruto said, his voice a little louder so everyone could hear. At that, Shizuku played along. “That’s right. Haru-senpai and I have a relationship so rich and dense it cannot be described by a simple word like ‘lovers’.” “Hold on a sec! What kind of super-misleading phrasing is that?!” “What are you saying, Senpai? There isn’t a single misunderstanding between us. More importantly, let’s hurry up and go home.” Shizuku coolly brushed off Haruto’s protest, grabbed his arm again, and started pulling him out of the classroom. “H-Hey, wait, Shizuku! If we leave the classroom like this, there are going to be all sorts of misunderstandings—” “You don’t need to worry about unnecessary things, Haru-senpai. Come on, let’s hurry up and go home together.”
Saying that, Shizuku dragged Haruto out of the classroom. Having trained at a karate dojo since she could remember, Shizuku paid no mind to the difference in physical ability between boys and girls as she mercilessly hauled away the desperately resisting Haruto. Just before he was completely out of the classroom, Haruto sent a glance toward Ayaka. Seeing him being pulled away by Shizuku, Ayaka’s eyes were wider with shock than he had ever seen them before, her mouth hanging slightly open. Looking at her expression, Haruto apologized with the force of a mental prostration and was dragged out of the room by Shizuku. Later, once they were outside the school and there were no other students around, Shizuku finally let him go. “Seriously… what am I going to do with you, Shizuku?” Haruto asked tiredly, recalling the chaotic scene in the classroom. “Was that ‘I’ll help you’ thing from yesterday a lie?” “What are you talking about? I’m helping you a ton, aren’t I?” Haruto sighed as Shizuku tilted her blank expression at him quizzically. “How was any of that ‘helping’?” “By doing that, I can smoke out any girls who might have feelings for you, Haru-senpai. The one who asked if I was your girlfriend is very likely interested in you. There were a few other girls whose expressions changed when I clung to your arm, too.” “Huh? So you did that on purpose…?” “Of course. For your sake, Haru-senpai, I trembled in fear but mustered up my courage and charged into an upperclassmen’s classroom all by myself.” “O-Oh. You didn’t look scared at all, but… thanks.” “You are most welcome.” At Haruto’s thanks, Shizuku placed her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest. Haruto looked at her with a troubled expression and spoke. “But I think you created a whole lot of misunderstandings, too. What was that about a ‘rich and dense relationship’?” “Isn’t it the truth? Since we were kids, Haru-senpai and I have trained together in karate. We’re like brother and sister, friends, and good rivals. I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?” “Well, that’s true, but… in that situation, that was… ugh.” As Shizuku explained matter-of-factly, Haruto put a hand to his head and looked down, as if enduring a headache. Next to him, Shizuku’s voice was full of energy, despite her blank face.
“I’ll help you again tomorrow.” “…Out of curiosity, what are you going to do this time?” Haruto gave her a slightly wary look, and Shizuku flashed the same fearless smirk she had shown him yesterday. “I told you, it’s no fun if I tell you what’s going to happen beforehand. Like I said yesterday, Haru-senpai, you just sit back and relax like you’re on a party boat.” “Sounds like a banquet is about to start. When do I get to feel safe on a big ship…?” Haruto recalled the shocked expression he had seen on Ayaka’s face for just a moment. Unable to predict Shizuku’s actions at all, Haruto felt both grateful for his junior’s help and increasingly anxious at the same time.